Backhoe attachments, backhoe apparatus attached to an snowplow adapted automobile, and method of use therefor

ABSTRACT

The field of the present invention provides for a large automobile that has already been adapted for snow plowing, but having the snow plow removed is then has a folding backhoe apparatus attached to the snow plow attachment points. In a preferred aspect an adapter plate is use and the end of the backhoe can either have a forward or reverse position backhoe shovel (or bucket) attached or have an adapter apparatus that can accept different utility tips such as a post digger drill, a jack hammer or a rake. In a further aspect, snow plow attachment points are attached to an adapter mechanism that can be attached to either a single arm backhoe or a double arm backhoe apparatus.

CLAIM TO PROVISIONAL APPLICATION

The application claims priority to U.S. Provisional Application611/034,297 filed 6 Mar. 2008, the entire disclosure of which isincorporated by reference

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The field of the present invention relates generally to a largeautomobile adapted for snow plowing having the snow plow removed andhaving a folding backhoe apparatus attached to the snow plow attachmentpoints. In a preferred aspect an adapter plate is use and the end of thebackhoe can either have a forward or reverse position backhoe shovel (orbucket) attached or have an adapter apparatus that can accept differentutility tips such as a post digger drill, a jack hammer or a rake. In afurther embodiment, the snow plow attachment points are attached to anadapter mechanism that can be attached to either a single arm backhoe ora double arm backhoe apparatus.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Traditionally, large snows plows are owned and used by the state or byprivate show plowing operators during the winter season and the plowsare removed during the warmer months. Many states have their trucksparked and not used for a number of months. In order to make equipmentinterchangeable as it wears out, snow plow attachments and snow plowsare often standard for large trucks that are owned by states and localmunicipalities, are only of a few types, or are readily adapted todifferent trucks types that are utilized for snow plowing.

When a backhoe apparatus or other similar equipment are needed fordigging, drilling, jack-hammering and the like, a truck for carrying theheavy equipment and the equipment must be transported and offloaded atthe transportation site. This requires the storage and maintenance ofmultiple types of equipment, depending upon the job and the time ofyear.

Farmers have long been required to accomplish different tasks on theirfarms in the most economical manner and often try to avoid havingmultiple tractors or trucks where each requires separate maintenance.Therefore, tractor equipment for different tasks is made for theirspecific model of tractor and can be removably attached. For example,backhoe apparatus are designed to attach to the back of the vehiclemountings, along with other equipment such as drills for postholedigging, shovels, plows and mowing equipment. For example, U.S. Pat. No.3,844,423 to Bailey describes a quick release backhoe attachment for atractor, U.S. Pat. No. 4,948,328 to Busch describes a quick releasebucket for a back hoe, and U.S. Pat. No. 6,931,770 to Belzile describesa number of pieces of front mounted equipment for small four wheelerrecreational vehicles that may substitute for more expensive tractors.

Accordingly, there is a need for more economical use of existingequipment by municipalities and state governments to be able to utilizeexisting equipment for multiple purposes by adapting the existingequipment rather than by purchasing and maintaining specific purposeequipment. In addition, private contractors can also benefit from suchmultipurpose equipment adaptations. Particularly, needed are equipmentand attachments that can be coupled with large snow plow equipment andbe easily transported to job sites to avoid the need for additionalspecific purpose equipment. Different attachments are needed fordifferent purposes where each may be attached to the existing snow plowattachment points, either directly or through an intermediate couplingdevice.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An object of the present invention is to provide methods and apparatusfor adapting large snow plow equipment and providing multiple purposeequipment that be can substituted for other single purpose equipment andavoid the need and expense for certain single purpose equipment, whereinthe multiple purpose equipment capabilities are provided by attachmentof apparatus to existing snow plow points of attachment and therebyprovide a member selected from the group consisting of backhoeequipment, drill, jack hammer, rake, pavement roller, soil tamper andthe like that can be easily transported by a snow plow truck to variouslocations instead of transporting and using single purpose equipment.

A preferred object of the present invention is to provide methods andapparatus for adapting large snow plow equipment into a backhoeapparatus wherein the bucket at the tip of the backhoe apparatus can bereplaced by other style equipment such as a drill, jack hammer, rake,pavement roller, soil tamper and the like. The arms for the backhoe maybe folded at the front of the truck in order to make it permissible todrive the snow plow truck on the open highway with the apparatusattached. The bucket at the end of the backhoe may be either a singlebucket or a dual jaws bucket type.

Another object is to provide a backhoe apparatus having a single armthat may be attached direct to the existing snow plow attachment pointson a snow plow truck, or to provide an adapter apparatus for attachingto the existing snow plow attachment points, and further attaching theadapter apparatus to a dual arm backhoe apparatus that can receive andoperate a larger bucket tip that can be used for lifting snow or othersolids upon a pile or stack.

A further object is to provide some embodiments wherein the backhoeapparatus may be transported within the rear of the truck and a winchmay be utilized to remove equipment at or near the job site for mountingupon the front of the snow plow truck.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

FIG. 1 is a side view showing of an embodiment of the snow plowautomotive vehicle (vehicle not shown) with snow plowing mountingapparatus 9 attached to a backhoe apparatus 20 according to theinvention wherein 1 is a set of two swivel plates 8 that are separatedby a bushing or thrust bearing 2 (not shown here, see FIG. 2) andsandwich a stationary plate 10 of the snow plow mounting apparatus,wherein the pair of swivel plates 8 have the ability to rotate and allowthe backhoe apparatus 20 to be moved from the transport or horizontalposition into the operating or vertical position. The shorter firstextension arm 3 of backhoe apparatus 20 allows the backhoe apparatus 20to be centered upon the snow plow vehicle (not shown) in the transportor horizontal position without extending beyond the fender of thevehicle. First extension arm 3 is the portion of the backhoe apparatus20 located closest to the attachment points of the vehicle. The nestingsecond extension arm 7 is a telescoping portion shaped so that theshorter first extension arm 3 nests inside so that in the horizontalposition during transportation less of the backhoe apparatus 20protrudes beyond the sides of the snow plow vehicle. The longer thirdextension arm 4 is the most distant arm portion of the backhoe apparatus20 from the attachment points to the vehicle and attaches to secondextension arm 7 on one end and on a second end provides an attachmentportion for buckets or other useful apparatus to the backhoe apparatus20. The top connection tube 5 is a tubular metal device that covers aconnection from a standard snow plow mount bracket for securely mountingto the snow plow vehicle and is secured by the top connection pin 6 thatis a locking pin to lock the top connection tube 5 to a standard snowplow upper mount bracket (not shown). The lower snow plow connectionbracket 9 is shown.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing further details of the mounting apparatuswith the backhoe apparatus 20 secured in a vertical (working) positionwith locking pin 2, which is a device that goes through the swivelplates 8 and the stationary plate 10 to allow the attachment to belocked into one of two positions: the horizontal transport position (seeFIG. 3) and the vertical working or operating position.

FIG. 3 is a rotated landscape printing front view showing furtherdetails of the mounting apparatus with the backhoe apparatus 20 securedin a horizontal (transportation) position with locking pin 2 (asdescribed in FIG. 2) going through the swivel plates 8 and thestationary plate 10 to allow the attachment to be locked into thehorizontal transport position and the second extension arm 7 telescopingarm has first extension arm 3 (not shown) retracted and with thirdextension arm 4 (not shown) folded upon nesting arm 7 in the horizontaltransportation position.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

The present invention provides methods and apparatus for adapting largesnow plow truck equipment and providing multiple purpose equipment thatbe can substituted for other single purpose equipment and avoid the needand expense for certain single purpose equipment, wherein the multiplepurpose equipment capabilities are provided by attachment of apparatusto existing snow plow points of attachment and thereby provide a memberselected from the group consisting of backhoe equipment, drill, jackhammer, rake, pavement roller, soil tamper and the like that can beeasily transported by a snow plow truck to various locations instead oftransporting and using single purpose equipment.

Heavy snow plow trucks are best adapted for such addition purposeapparatus and may even utilize off-road tractor-like tires that canoptionally replace the ordinary tires for the trip to a job site or atthe site. Mechanical attachments for hydraulic, electric, or acombination thereof, piston portions of a backhoe apparatus according tothe invention whose purpose is to lift and lower the backhoe frameworkor to manipulate the bucket at one end of the backhoe apparatus can becan be attached directly to existing attachment points on a snow plowtruck or may be attached to intermediate adapter apparatus, which areattached to existing mounting points. The hydraulic fluid system can beattached to the existing hydraulic system of the snow plow truck, orhave a separate system. Preferably, quick release mechanical,electrical, or hydraulic attachments to the snow plow truck are utilizedto expedite equipment changes.

Control of multipurpose equipment attached to a snow plow truck may havetheir own controls or may plug into a harness that communicates with thecab portion of the snow plow truck. Likewise the cab of the snow plowtruck may be adapted to provide a harness or plug for certain controls,which may be interchangeable or swapped out depending upon the type ofequipment in use with the snow plow truck.

A preferred embodiment of the invention provides methods and apparatusfor adapting large snow plow equipment into a backhoe apparatus whereinthe bucket at the tip of the backhoe apparatus can interchangeablyattach to style equipment apparatus located at one end of the backhoearms, such as a drill, jack hammer, rake, pavement roller, soil tamperand the like. In a more preferred embodiment, the one or more arms ofthe backhoe apparatus portion of the equipment can be folded down andcollapsed at the front of the truck in order to make it easier tooperate the snow plow truck on the open highway with apparatus attached.

According to the invention embodiment, the bucket at the end of thebackhoe may be either a single bucket or a dual jaws bucket type. Also,the bucket at one end of the backhoe apparatus may narrow or wide andshallow or deep, depending upon whether one or two arm backhoe apparatusare attached to it and the desired use for the bucket.

One embodiment of the invention provides a backhoe apparatus having asingle arm that may be attached direct to the existing snow plowattachment points on a snow plow truck, or the apparatus may be attachedto an intermediate adapter apparatus that is attached to the existingsnow plow attachment points. In particular, an intermediate adapterapparatus may be utilized when a dual arm backhoe apparatus or whenadditional hydraulic, electrical, or winching equipment are attached tooperate a larger bucket tip that can be used for lifting snow or othersolids upon a pile or stack, or to operate larger equipment attached toone end of the backhoe arms apparatus.

In some embodiments, the backhoe apparatus may be transported within therear of the truck and a winch may be utilized to remove equipment at ornear the job site for mounting upon the front of the snow plow truck.

In a preferred embodiment the apparatus are mounted to an “A” framemounting bracket that connects to a standard multiple snow plow mountson a motor vehicle. In such an embodiment, the “A” frame mountingbracket connects to the attachment points located underneath the frontof the vehicle and the third point is located at the front top of thevehicle. This “A” frame mounting bracket is attached to the three snowplow mounting points and supports the attached back hoe via a triangularframe. Attaching the backhoe apparatus to the intermediate frame is arotating mount system that allows the piece of equipment to be locked inthe upright, working position and the horizontal or transport positionvia a locking pin. Manual rotation is permitted by two circular platessandwiching a plate mounted to the “A” frame which is attached to themounts on the vehicle. The backhoe attachment is mounted on the outermost of the circular plates allowing a rigid secure mount to the framemounting bracket and thus the vehicle. The hydraulic pump and ancillaryequipment are attached to the triangular frame-mounting bracket and areoperated by the connected controls for the back hoe. A power connectionis made to the vehicle electrical system. The back hoe, in the verticalor working position, is able to have all functions of a standard backhoe. In a further preferred embodiment, the back hoe (in the horizontalor transport position) is folded and locked to the triangular mountingframe.

Herein, some attachment points, the shape of equipment and the types ofmechanical, electrical and hydraulic features are not depictedspecifically by drawings. These are within the skill of a mechanic toprovide after reading the adaptations described in the present text andreviewing the drawings provided.

The present invention may be embodied in specific forms other than thoseparticularly described above or illustrated by the above examples. Uponviewing the present application preferred embodiments and otherdescriptions herein of the present invention, variations and otherimplementations that do not depart from the spirit and scope of thepresent invention will be apparent to one of routine skill in thisfield. Such variations and other implementations are considered part ofthe present invention and within the scope of the appended claims.Accordingly, reference should be made to the appended claims, ratherthan to the forgoing specification and examples, as indicating the scopeof the present invention.

1. An apparatus for adapting snow plow truck equipment to providemultiple purpose equipment that be can substituted for other singlepurpose equipment, wherein the multiple purpose equipment capabilitiesare provided by directly or indirectly attaching equipment apparatusportions to existing snow plow points of attachment and therebyproviding a multipurpose equipment member selected from the groupconsisting of backhoe equipment, drill, jack hammer, rake, pavementroller, soil tamper and the like that can be easily transported by asnow plow truck to various locations instead of transporting and usingsingle purpose equipment.
 2. The apparatus according to claim 1, whereinheavy snow plow trucks are adapted for such addition purpose apparatus.3. The apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the heavy snow plowtrucks can utilize off-road tractor-like tires that can replace ordinarytires for the trip to a job site, or may be attached to the vehicle atthe job site as a replacement for ordinary tires.
 4. The apparatusaccording to claim 3, wherein mechanical attachments for hydraulic,electric, or a combination thereof portions of a backhoe arms apparatusa backhoe apparatus according to the invention, which may includehydraulic pistons and levers whose purpose is to lift and lower thebackhoe framework or to manipulate the bucket at one end of the backhoeapparatus are attached directly to existing attachment points on a snowplow truck or are indirectly attached through an intermediate adapterapparatus that are attached to existing mounting points.
 5. Theapparatus according to claim 4, wherein the hydraulic fluid system isattached to the existing hydraulic system of the snow plow truck, or hasa separate system.
 6. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein quick releasemechanical, electrical, or hydraulic attachments are utilized to attachapparatus to the snow plow truck and thereby expedite equipment changes.7. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein control of multipurpose equipmentattached to a snow plow truck is actuated by an equipment operator frominside or outside of the snow plow truck, and wherein such multipurposeequipment apparatus either has its own controls or may plug into aharness that communicates with a cab portion of the snow plow truck. 8.The apparatus of claim 7, wherein the cab interior of the snow plowtruck is adapted to provide a harness or plug for certain controls,which may be interchangeable or swapped out depending upon the type ofequipment that is attached and in use with the snow plow truck.
 9. Theapparatus of claim 1, wherein a large snow plow truck is adapted into abackhoe apparatus having one or more arms with a removable bucket at oneend of the backhoe arms apparatus, and wherein the bucket can bereplaced with other shaped buckets or may be replaced withinterchangeable apparatus that can provide other functional equipment atone end of the backhoe arms that are selected from the group comprisinga drill, jack hammer, rake, pavement roller, soil tamper and bucketstyle jaws.
 10. The apparatus of claim 9, wherein the one or more armsof the backhoe apparatus portion of the equipment can be folded down andcollapsed at the front of the truck in order to make it easier tooperate the snow plow truck on the open highway with apparatus attachedand can be locked in position during transportation.
 11. The apparatusof claim 9, wherein the bucket at the end of the backhoe arms may beeither a single bucket or a dual jaws bucket type, and the bucket may benarrow or wide and shallow or deep, depending upon whether one or twoarm backhoe apparatus are attached to it and desired use for the bucket.12. A method for adapting snow plow truck equipment to provide multiplepurpose equipment that be can substituted for other single purposeequipment, wherein the multiple purpose equipment capabilities areprovided by directly or indirectly attaching equipment apparatusportions to existing snow plow points of attachment and therebyproviding a multipurpose equipment member selected from the groupconsisting of backhoe equipment, drill, jack hammer, rake, pavementroller, soil tamper and the like that can be easily transported by asnow plow truck to various locations instead of transporting and usingsingle purpose equipment.
 13. The method according to claim 12, whereinheavy snow plow trucks are adapted for such addition purpose apparatusand heavy snow plow trucks can utilize off-road tractor-like tires thatcan replace ordinary tires for the trip to a job site, or may beattached to the vehicle at the job site as a replacement for ordinarytires.
 14. The method according to claim 13, wherein mechanicalattachments for hydraulic, electric, or a combination thereof portionsof a backhoe arms apparatus a backhoe apparatus according to theinvention, which may include hydraulic pistons and levers whose purposeis to lift and lower the backhoe framework or to manipulate the bucketat one end of the backhoe apparatus are attached directly to existingattachment points on a snow plow truck or are indirectly attachedthrough an intermediate adapter apparatus that are attached to existingmounting points.
 15. The method according to claim 14, wherein thehydraulic fluid system is attached to the existing hydraulic system ofthe snow plow truck, or has a separate system, and wherein quick releasemechanical, electrical, or hydraulic attachments are utilized to attachapparatus to the snow plow truck and thereby expedite equipment changes.16. The method according to claim 14, wherein control of multipurposeequipment attached to a snow plow truck is actuated by an equipmentoperator from inside or outside of the snow plow truck, and wherein suchmultipurpose equipment apparatus either has its own controls or may pluginto a harness that communicates with a cab portion of the snow plowtruck.
 17. The method according to claim 16, wherein the cab interior ofthe snow plow truck is adapted to provide a harness or plug for certaincontrols, which may be interchangeable or swapped out depending upon thetype of equipment that is attached and in use with the snow plow truck.18. The method according to claim 12, wherein a large snow plow truck isadapted into a backhoe apparatus having one or more arms with aremovable bucket at one end of the backhoe arms apparatus, and whereinthe bucket can be replaced with other shaped buckets or may be replacedwith interchangeable apparatus that can provide other functionalequipment at one end of the backhoe arms that are selected from thegroup comprising a drill, jack hammer, rake, pavement roller, soiltamper and bucket style jaws.
 19. The method according to claim 18,wherein the one or more arms of the backhoe apparatus portion of theequipment can be folded down and collapsed at the front of the truck inorder to make it easier to operate the snow plow truck on the openhighway with apparatus attached, and wherein the bucket at the end ofthe backhoe arms may be either a single bucket or a dual jaws buckettype, and the bucket may be narrow or wide and shallow or deep,depending upon whether one or two arm backhoe apparatus are attached toit and desired use for the bucket.
 20. The method according to claim 12,wherein the backhoe apparatus may be transported within the rear of thetruck and a winch may be utilized to remove equipment at or near the jobsite for mounting upon the front of the snow plow truck.